Barack Obama’s Wednesday night speech at the Democratic National Convention immediately spurred a deluge of reactions across social media, with many praising the former president’s rhetoric and calling it a marked difference from that of the current commander-in-chief.
Celebrated journalist Dan Rather called Obama’s speech an “inspiring vision of the American story,” while others complimented everything from Obama’s suit to his “heartfelt and urgent plea for our democracy.”
Other voices zeroed in on the graveness of Obama’s words, pointing out that his direct usage of Trump’s name and harsh critique of his successor’s record stood in marked contrast from the tradition of former presidents engaging in, at best, subdued criticisms of those who follow them in the White House.
Trump, in character, midway through Obama’s speech begin live-tweeting in all caps false attacks on his predecessor. The contrast between the two leaders was also highlighted on Twitter.
Not all voices were positive. Fox News host Laura Inghram called the speech the “same type of anti-Trump diatribe that we’ve been hearing for five years.” Former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders accused Obama’s administration of illegally spying on Trump’s campaign ― echoing the baseless assertion that Trump has called “Obamagate,” which was also in one of the president’s Wednesday night tweets.
A myriad of voices, however, characterized the 44th commander-in-chief’s words as downright “presidential,” and even reminiscent of an certain Greek god.